Geospatial and Socioeconomic Disparities in Access to Interventional Radiology Care in the United States

Monday, March 6, 2023

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

Location: Phoenix Convention Center, North Ballroom 120 D

Poster Presenter(s)

YA

Yusuf Ahmad, BS

OMS-II
LECOM-Bradenton

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose

Author/Co-author(s)

NA

Nafisa Asad, BS

OMS-II
LECOM-Bradenton
RN

Reja Nasir, MBBS

Medical Student
Dow International Medical College
Osman Ahmed, MD

Associate Prof
University of Chicago

Disclosure(s):

Yusuf Ahmad, BS: No financial relationships to disclose

Osman Ahmed, MD: Argon Medical: Advisory Committee or Review Panel Member (Ongoing); Asahi: Consultant (Ongoing); Bard Peripheral Vascular: Speaking and Teaching (Terminated, September 1, 2022); Boston Scientific: Advisory Committee or Review Panel Member (Ongoing), Consultant (Ongoing); Canon Medical Systems: Consultant (Ongoing), Contracted Research (Ongoing); Cook: Speaking and Teaching (Ongoing); Johnson & Johnson: Advisory Committee or Review Panel Member (Ongoing); Penumbra Inc.: Speaking and Teaching (Ongoing); Philips: Contracted Research (Terminated, October 1, 2022)

Purpose: To determine and analyze the geographic distribution of interventional radiologists in the United States in order to identify populations that have decreased accessibility to IR care.

Materials and Methods: The Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) public database was reviewed for board-certified interventional radiologists in all cities within the United States. US Census data was used to acquire county-level data sets on poverty, population, unemployment, median household income, education, and racial diversity. Counties with interventional radiologists were compared to counties without interventional radiologists for each variable.

Results: 2989 board-certified US interventional radiologists were found to be operating in 15.5% (n=487) of all counties. Almost a third of the country's population (31.2%) did not have access to an interventional radiologist within their county. The mean interventional radiologist:population ratio was 0.305 per 100,000 people. The average median income among counties with interventional radiologists was significantly greater at $67,649 compared to $53,528 among counties without interventional radiologists (P< 0.05). In addition, an average of 31.3% of the population had a college degree in counties with interventional radiologists, which was significantly higher than the average for counties without (P< 0.001). Greater average percentages of African Americans, Pacific Islanders, and Hispanics were observed in counties with interventional radiologists at 13.1%, 0.232%, and 13.7%, respectively (P< 0.05).

Conclusion: Interventional radiologists are disproportionately distributed, with higher densities practicing near urban areas. Access is also limited to counties that have higher incomes and a greater percentage of citizens with college educations. There are higher percentages of minorities in these counties, however, it is unclear whether IR treatment is financially accessible for everyone.